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Hurricane Oswald
Hurricane Oswald, also known as the Disney hurricane of 2054, was an extremely intense hurricane, known for its extensive impact on the Disney World resort. The fifteenth named storm, tenth hurricane, and fifth major hurricane of the 2054 Atlantic hurricane season, Oswald originated from a large cyclonic gyre that developed over the Caribbean sea. Developing into a tropical cyclone on November 10, Oswald gradually intensified, eventually peaking as a Category 4 hurricane. After striking Cuba, Oswald hooked left and made landfall over Florida, bringing winds of Category 2 force to the Disney World resorts. After this, Oswald made a second landfall on the Florida Panhandle, becoming extratropical shortly after, and transitioning into a powerful winter storm a couple days later. Meteorological History In the first week of November, a large monsoonal gyre developed over Central America. The low pressure area moved erratically, not organizing further for several days. As it was preparing to emerge off the coast, the National Hurricane Center began to monitor the system for potential development, as several models had been suggesting. Slow development occurred due to some wind shear. By November 9, they began sending recon into the system. By the following day, Tropical Depression Sixteen formed. Due to the depression's broad nature, it failed to intensify for almost two days. Early on November 12, the depression was upgraded to a tropical storm, receiving the name Oswald. Upon being declared a tropical storm, Oswald was forecast to attain Category 1 hurricane strength before making landfall in Cuba. In contrast to the storm's early stages, Oswald intensified quite fast upon being named. Twenty-Four hours after being named, Oswald began developing an eye, and was upgraded to a hurricane. Oswald began to struggle with some dry air shortly afterward, with the eye popping in and out of satellite imagery. After Oswald mixed out the dry air, it began to rapidly intensify again, attaining Category 2 strength. Six hours later, it was upgraded to a major hurricane. At this time, a pinhole eye emerged on satellite. The eye expanded slightly, and on November 15, Oswald attained peak intensity, with winds of 155 mph. Initially, however, Oswald was analyzed as being 145 mph. At this intensity, Oswald made landfall in Playa Ancon, Cuba a few hours later. Oswald's eye clouded over as it traversed the mountainous terrain of Cuba, weakening to a Category 2 hurricane as it emerged off the Cuban coast. After the storm emerged off the coast, it entered an area of complex steering currents. The storm's forecast was uncertain, with forecasts ranging from the Gulf of Mexico, to a re-curve out to sea. Oswald accelerated northward, and began to slowly re-strengthen due to warm sea surface temperatures. The hurricane's eye suddenly began to emerge on satellite again, as it reached a secondary peak of 120 mph. At this time and strength, Oswald hooked left and made landfall in Delray Beach, Florida, during the evening hours on November 16. Oswald moved quickly over Florida and didn't weaken quickly. Oswald passed only a couple miles away from Bay Lake, bringing a lot of the Disney World resort into the intense eyewall, which was producing Category 2 winds at the time. By the morning of November 18, Oswald was a disorganized Category 1 hurricane. Shortly after emerging off Florida, it weakened to a tropical storm. Continued weakening occurred due to high wind shear, and that afternoon, Oswald made a second and final landfall west of Aplachicola, Florida, as a 60 mph tropical storm. After landfall, Oswald quickly underwent post-tropical transition and was no longer a tropical cyclone only six hours after moving inland. Oswald's remnants eventually merged with a frontal system, which developed into a large winter storm. The storm was last spotted over eastern Canada on November 20. Preparations Cuba Upon Oswald's formation, shelters were opened across Cuba, due to the storm's forecast approach. About five shelters opened across the country. However, more had to be opened when the storm rapidly intensified, and people needed to get to safety quicker. Some 800 people were evacuated from central Cuba in advance of the storm. Jamaica During Oswald's early days as a tropical storm, it briefly threatened Jamaica, raising tropical storm watches. A couple shelters were opened, but weren't used in the end. United States On November 15, the Florida governor declared a state of emergency, stating that almost the entire state could be in the storm's potential path. This applied to several dozen counties, especially in Central Florida. The president approved a disaster declaration for a large swath of Central Florida, including the Bay Lake area. Several major colleges closed for a couple days due to the storm's approach, and public schools followed suit soon after. As much as 500,000 people were confirmed to have evacuated from the storm, with many more likely unconfirmed evacuees. Impact Central America Cuba United States Disney World In Popular Media Retirement Due to the severe damage across Cuba, the United States, and most notably the Disney Parks, the name Oswald was officially retired by the Hurricane Committee in April of 2055. The name was replaced with Odell for the 2060 season.Category:November Storms Category:Category 4 hurricanes Category:Major Hurricanes Category:Retired storms Category:Atlantic hurricanes Category:Porygonal Category:Future storms